Date at Eight (Thirty)
by SingsongRandom
Summary: Liz has a weird feeling about all of this, but there's pie involved, so it should be okay. Jack/Liz


Title: Date at Eight (Thirty)

Author: SingsongRandom

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Seriously. 30 Rock isn't mine. And I just searched for prompts and found "apple pie." So, really the prompt isn't even mine. Wow.

Rating: PG

Pairing: Jack/Liz

Fandom: 30 Rock

Prompt: Apple Pie

Summary: Liz has a weird feeling about all of this, but there's pie involved, so it should be okay.

"Lemon?"

"What's up, Jack?"

"I need to see you in my office at eight-thirty."

"What?"

"Wear something nice. No sneakers."

He walks away without another word, but she decides not to question it. Liz assumes that he's going to introduce her to some of his business friends. She knows she'll be working past eight-thirty anyway, since her writers have been slacking off more than usual this week.

She tells Jenna, who is over the moon about the whole thing.

"He wants to see you late at night in his office? Just you guys?" Jenna asks, raising an eyebrow.

Liz shakes her head and groans. "Eight-thirty is _not _late. And I don't know, he didn't say who'd be there. I think it might be a little businessperson party."

Jenna giggles. "What?" Liz asks, curious.

"It's just…Jack likes you."

Liz contorts her face, pulling her lips up, and she appears a little badger-y. "Well, of course Jack likes me. As a _friend_. Nothing more, Jenna. That's stupid, and not true, and just…gross."

Jenna sighs. "You're so oblivious to _everything_, Liz." She continues searching through wardrobe for a "nice" outfit for Liz to wear ("A polyester sweater vest and corduroys are only nice if you live in Mr. Roger's neighborhood," she had pointed out) and squeals when she stumbles upon a flowy eggplant-colored dress, complete with a rhinestone waist belt. "This is gorgeous! You've got to try that on!"

Liz brows furrow in confusion. "What was this for? I don't remember ever writing a sketch where we used -"

Just then they hear Lee's voice and realize they need to bolt out the door. So they do.

"Does he not like you?" Jenna asks when they're in her dressing room.

"No, he doesn't. I mean, yes, he does not. Wait, I mean – he does not."

"Stop stalling, Liz, try on the dress."

Liz rolls her eyes, but gives in. After a few moments she emerges and says, "I don't know if I put this on the right way…" But Jenna loves it and tells her it's perfect and she has to wear it. Liz rather likes it herself.

At eight-thirty, Tracy and Jenna are left rehearsing under the supervision of Pete, who begged Liz not to leave him alone with the actors ("I don't trust Tracy with the sword in the King Arthur sketch!") but Liz told him she was probably just going to shake hands with strong-handed men in patterned ties and that she would be back in no time.

When the elevator doors open on the fifty-second floor, Jonathan glares at her. "I have no idea why he likes you so much," he hisses. Liz doesn't exactly know what he means, but she makes a face and sticks her tongue out at him anyway.

Liz knocks at the door softly and Jack lets her in. She walks into the office awkwardly, almost falling over in the clunky heels Jenna made her wear, but Jack grabs her arm to hold her up.

"Good evening, Lemon. You look nice."

"Well, that's how you asked me to look, so…this is good?"

A grin crosses Jack's face. "Very good," he says, his voice low.

"So, uhm…where is everyone?" Liz asks, looking around. The atmosphere is strange – the lights are dim and there's an overbearing aroma of strawberry and she wonders if Kathy Geiss paid a visit, and there are candles on the coffee table next to – _Ooh, apple pie! _– and again she sees that she's the only guest and that freaks her out.

"What do you mean, 'everyone'?" Jack asks. He motions for her to sit at the couch. "It' s just us tonight." He can see that she is close to toppling over so he takes her hand and leads her to the sofa. "You can take them off if you want," he offers, but she shakes her head. "No, thank you. Not gonna happen. Not now, not ever. I -"

"-get the point," Jack finishes, laughing a little, and crinkles form at the corners of his eyes and wow, he looks great in this light and oh yeah, why are there not more people here again?

Liz starts to feel her heart pound. _What if Jenna was right? What if Jack does…_ She pushes the thought from her mind because he doesn't. There's no way. Sure, his office is decorated like some fancy restaurant and there's that apple pie again, just waiting to be devoured, and _why are she and Jack the only two people present?_

"I thought this was going to be some kind of business meeting," Liz says, and forces a bit of a laugh.

"Oh. It's not." Jack says. "Apple pie?"

Liz is about to ask him what's really going on, but she figures she should eat the pie first, just in case (in case of what, she's not sure. But it's always a good idea to eat pie, she thinks to herself) so she reaches for a fork and starts to massacre the pie and she's glad because it's delicious and probably the best she's ever had and oh yeah, _why is she alone with Jack!?_

When her plate is clean, she sets it down on the table and looks at Jack, who has been staring at her, smiling. "What are you doing?" she asks, mouth still half-full.

He chuckles. "I'm just looking at you."

Liz finishes the pie and folds her arms across her chest. "Okay, _what_ is going on?"

"What do you mean?"

She imitates him in a mock-gravelly voice. "'You look nice.' 'It's just us tonight.' What the what!?"

Jack sighs and drops his gaze to the ground. After a moment he looks up and says, "Lemon, I wanted to ask you something. And I know how you tend to react to these things, so I had to give you pie first."

_Where is he going with this? _Liz asks herself and she can feel her heart start to pound again because this sooo isn't like Jack, or at least it's not her buddy Jack. This is how Jack behaves around people like Bianca and C.C. and his other –

_girlfriends._

She can feel a lump forming in her throat because Jack isn't supposed to be like this with her. They're not a thing, and Jenna couldn't be right, Jenna's never been right before.

Jack's voice snaps Liz out of her own thoughts. "Lemon – Liz…"

The use of her first name bothers her, because that's not a thing buddy Jack does. He _should _call her Lemon. She _wants _him to call her Lemon.

"I would like for us to...be a couple."

Liz isn't sure how to respond, so she laughs in his face. And the problem is, she can't stop laughing.

"Jack – I'm – sorry –" she manages between gasps for breath.

Then she sees how crushed he looks, and she feels bad. Slowly, her laughter ceases. As it does, Jack gets to his feet, shoves his hands in his pockets, and walks over to the window.

Liz clears her throat multiple times before she speaks. "Jack, I…I didn't mean to…"

"You could have just said no," he says quietly, without turning around. "I think you should go, Lemon." The second part sounds somewhat cold, and Liz feels guilty.

She stands up too and is about to approach him but the heels are really _too _high and she trips, falling flat on her face.

"I suppose I deserved that," she says into the carpet.

At once Jack spins around and bends down to help her. "Lemon, are you okay?" He extends a hand for her to grab, which she does, and he pulls her up.

"Yeah, I'm fine…listen, Jack, I didn't mean to hurt you or anything, it's just…I wasn't expecting this. At all." She sits down on the arm of the couch and he stands facing her. "You're oblivious to _everything_, aren't you?" He says, and crinkles his nose, which Liz thinks is just the _worst _because as much as she hates to admit it, he _is _good-looking and maybe she should give him a chance. And besides, he _did _give her apple pie.

"So you _do _have a thing for me?" she asks, and Liz is glad to see the grin return to his face. "I wouldn't have said what I did otherwise."

She's seated on the arm of the chair again, holding herself in place with both hands. "But do you think we could really work? Like, as a couple? What if it made our friendship weird?" This is something that concerns her. She would never want to sacrifice her friendship with Jack for a relationship that would mean nothing.

"I've already thought it through. Being together cannot make our friendship any 'weirder' – your word, not mine – than this evening has. We can only move forward. Right?" Jack lifts his eyebrows up like he knows something she doesn't, but she doesn't press that. In fact, she doesn't say anything. So Jack crouches so that they are at the same eye level. "Elizabeth Lemon, I am not a psychic. I don't know what the future holds for us – if anything. But I do know how I feel about you. And…you make me happy, Liz. I want to be with you. Look. We've made it this far; don't you think we could…advance our relationship?"

Liz grabs his face in her hands and pulls him close to her, pressing her lips to his. When they finally part, he says, "I will take that as a yes."

And he's happy, and she's happy. They're both happy. And once again, things are lining up for ol' Liz Lemon.

And for ol' Jack Donaghy, too.

-End-


End file.
